Lucia

de Vernai

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October 15, 2007

Japan Starvation Death: Universal Shadiness With a Local Flavor

The perpetual debate about what are the most significant factors in political decision-making is perpetrated by a constantly growing list of possible contributing factors. Consequently, rational choice theory is often anything but, and political decisions are products of pride, custom or history.

Although counterintuitive, that may not be a bad thing. The feeling of shame, for example, is a strong motivating force. Unfortunately, its causes vary greatly and behavior that one political culture finds despicable is overlooked in another.

The Clinton sex scandals of the late ’90s tarnished the image of the presidency and scarred the pure and idealistic minds of the electorate forever. Years later, the French are still trying to figure out what the big deal was. An intern blows you and it’s the end of the world. You try to blow the world up and you’re an American hero.

If the French are shameless and the Americans have their priorities all wrong, is there any hope for the degenerating moral fabric of the western world? Commentators often say no and point to “eastern cultures” for guidance. This however, may be another example of cultural misunderstanding.

Last week The New York Times ran a story about the failings of the Japanese welfare system. The front page story details the experience of a man whose welfare benefits were cut and whose diary was found after he starved to death with musings of rice balls.

Officials were embarrassed because the starvation, a third reported in the city in the past three years, was publicized. Even in the political culture known for its emphasis on honor, the events are shameful once in the public eye.

The public attention factor seems to be the one that is consistent throughout cultural and geographical boundaries. When evaluating what makes a governing body or official choose a particular trajectory, it is important, although rather romantic, to attach a great deal of weight to cultural factors without taking into consideration the universal importance of public opinion.

It would be naïve to assume that Japanese officials do not have affairs or that the French don’t drop the ball on the universalized everything of which they are so proud. The kind of national pride that comes from the absence of certain missteps is rarely well justified.

Relying on oversimplification to separate our political culture from another results not only in oversimplification but also in misinformation, often because we do not understand the priorities of the other party.

The French are not pansies. They just really, really like their historic buildings intact.

The Japanese are not opposed to helping their fellow man. They just put extra emphasis on self-determination.

Americans are not sex-obsessed and unfaithful. That’s the French.

Short of devoting your life to following opinion polls and cultural trends, there really is little we can do to truly understand the motivation behind the actions of foreign political powers. In fact, understanding our own takes some effort. Nonetheless, it is comforting to know that shady political behavior is a universal quality with a local twist.

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